Strike in Canada may be averted as major Canadian airline reaches deal with employees
Published January 8, 2024 at 4:47 pm
Air Transat and its 2,100 flight attendants have reached a new tentative collective agreement that, if accepted, will stave off any job action up to and including a widespread strike.
Officials with the Montreal-based airline, one of Canada’s major carriers, said in a news release today that the tentative pact is for five years in length and will be presented to union members immediately for a vote.
The flight attendants, who are represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees, early last week rejected a previous offer from the airline, which operates many of its flights out of Pearson Airport in Mississauga.
Air Transat officials said Monday’s deal comes after “five days of intensive discussions.”
They added they won’t reveal any details of the tentative agreement until the bargaining process has been completed.
“We are happy to have concluded a new tentative agreement that satisfies both parties and that will enable Air Transat to remain competitive,” airline spokesperson Julie Lamontagne said in Monday’s news release. “In response to the unforeseen rejection of the first tentative agreement last week, we immediately returned to the bargaining table to explore all possible solutions. We are confident that this new offer will meet our flight attendants’ expectations and will adequately reflect their interests.”
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Air Transat was founded in 1986 and operates scheduled and charter flights to 60 destinations in 25 countries.
CUPE, which represents about 18,500 flight attendants in Canada in total, reportedly said last week that one of the main reasons the flight attendants rejected the proposed earlier deal was the wages offered failed to keep up with higher living costs.
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